Post by cdevaney on May 11, 2011 18:37:46 GMT -5

Posted on Wednesday May 11, 2011 at 12:01 PM Add| .Big, ugly red-eyed bugs are hatching in Tennessee and expecting to be a royal pain to the state’s citizens for the next five weeks. And they’re louder than rockets. Which means the bulletin board at Bonnaroo.com has a discussion thread of concerned festivalgoers.

This concern is Brood XIX, a cicada hatch that occurs every 13 years. This may sound familiar: in 2004 Brood X took over parts of the Midwest. Brood X hatches every 17 years and there was a concern that the insects, whose drones were as loud as lawn mowers, would compromise outdoor music events.

“For us in Middle Tennessee, this is definitely the big one,” University of Tennessee entomologist Frank Hale told UPI.

But the organizers of Bonnaroo are not that concerned.

The cicada infestation is not prominent in Coffee County, home to the Manchester event, according to Bonnaroo Director of Corporate Communications Jeff Cuellar. Also, the June 9-12 event arrives as the cicada nuisance wanes.

Moreover, Great Stage Park is a wide-open area, and cicadas like to live in trees. Ironically, trees are in short supply, even in the campgrounds, Cuellar noted, and event promoters AC Entertainment and Superfly Productions have a five-year plan to plant more trees in the area. If anything, the insects, which will be laying eggs, will help fertilize the grounds, Cuellar said.

“And they’re harmless,” he told Pollstar. “They’re just big, dumb insects that fly around and run into things.”

Cuellar said Bonnaroo officials are in discussion with the University of Tennessee Entomology Department and are considering a “The More You Know” video spoof series that will educate festivalgoers about the cicada swarm.

“But we’re more concerned about educating them about proper sunscreen and keeping hydrated,” he noted.

Post by wolfmanjess on May 11, 2011 22:15:07 GMT -5

Posted on Wednesday May 11, 2011 at 12:01 PM Add| .Big, ugly red-eyed bugs are hatching in Tennessee and expecting to be a royal pain to the state’s citizens for the next five weeks. And they’re louder than rockets. Which means the bulletin board at Bonnaroo.com has a discussion thread of concerned festivalgoers.

This concern is Brood XIX, a cicada hatch that occurs every 13 years. This may sound familiar: in 2004 Brood X took over parts of the Midwest. Brood X hatches every 17 years and there was a concern that the insects, whose drones were as loud as lawn mowers, would compromise outdoor music events.

“For us in Middle Tennessee, this is definitely the big one,” University of Tennessee entomologist Frank Hale told UPI.

But the organizers of Bonnaroo are not that concerned.

The cicada infestation is not prominent in Coffee County, home to the Manchester event, according to Bonnaroo Director of Corporate Communications Jeff Cuellar. Also, the June 9-12 event arrives as the cicada nuisance wanes.

Moreover, Great Stage Park is a wide-open area, and cicadas like to live in trees. Ironically, trees are in short supply, even in the campgrounds, Cuellar noted, and event promoters AC Entertainment and Superfly Productions have a five-year plan to plant more trees in the area. If anything, the insects, which will be laying eggs, will help fertilize the grounds, Cuellar said.

“And they’re harmless,” he told Pollstar. “They’re just big, dumb insects that fly around and run into things.”

Cuellar said Bonnaroo officials are in discussion with the University of Tennessee Entomology Department and are considering a “The More You Know” video spoof series that will educate festivalgoers about the cicada swarm.

“But we’re more concerned about educating them about proper sunscreen and keeping hydrated,” he noted.

Everyone experiences music differently.To say that something is subjectively wrong with live music is to also say that you are more than just your credentials or experience. It says that you are above whatever it is that you see as being the standard. Breaking everything down critically to the point where you are above every matter looking down on it only isolates you and makes you look foolish.

Post by troo on May 16, 2011 13:01:06 GMT -5

This cold spell (several days with high's in the 50's and low's in the 40's) seems to have put a damper on the cicadas. I wonder if it will pick back up when it warms back up or if Mother Nature's put a stop to the "plague" of locusts. I guess we'll see.

Post by JHOinTN on May 16, 2011 13:17:19 GMT -5

Ok I will admit I did not seek them out this morning before I left for work. But as of yesterday, they were still buzzing around. I'm starting to think I have abnormal amounts of cicadas at my house. dreamingtree said she doesn't have any?? She's farther out of the city than I am!